Mudskippers are a familiar sight to coastal residents of Go Cong. These amphibians can crawl quickly on land, climb trees, and move across the water at speeds of around 30 km/h. They live in abundance in coastal mangrove swamps and muddy areas. This species resembles the starry goby but has rougher skin and two large, protruding eyes on the top of its head. Because of these distinctive features, they are popularly known as "mudskippers."
Mudskippers are quite aggressive, with mouths full of fangs, upper jaw teeth arranged in two rows, lower jaw teeth in one row, large eyes, and, most notably, two fins that resemble arms, allowing them to easily glide across muddy ground. Mudskippers have a cylindrical head, and their two protruding eyes on top give them a very wide field of vision. They breathe with lungs and can breathe on land, but in water they use gills and usually come out of their burrows when the sun comes out. Anyone who has heard of this unusual fish will be amazed when they see them walking, running, jumping, and even climbing trees. Based on these locomotion characteristics, Westerners call them "walking fish," and the World Wildlife Organization considers them one of the six "strangest creatures on the planet."
These fish are quite omnivorous, feeding on mostly smaller species such as shrimp, crabs, mud crabs, and small fish. Mudskippers are very agile and cunning; they hunt on the water's surface and live in deep burrows, 2-3 meters long. They dig burrows with their mouths, creating many interconnected passages in inconspicuous places such as among the roots of mangrove trees, nipa palms, and thickets of water hyacinth, and can dive underwater for 5-10 minutes.
There are three traditional methods for catching mudskippers: People catch mudskippers by waiting for the tide to recede. When the mudskippers enter their burrows, they seal all the side entrances and place small nets in front of the main entrance. When the tide rises, the mudskippers come out and get caught in the nets. At that point, people simply remove the nets and catch the mudskippers at the marked burrow entrances. Alternatively, based on years of experience, people in the coastal areas of Go Cong use bamboo rods or straight mangrove branches, about 2-3 meters long. They remove the intestines from the mudskippers, thread coconut leaf stalks into a circle, and tie it to the fishing line. They also prepare a large basin sprinkled with ash or dry bran. When the tide recedes and the mudflats are exposed, the mudskippers jump around. They lure the mudskippers to bite the bait, gently pull it up, and skillfully make the mudskipper fall into the basin of bran (or ash). In addition, people can also go fishing for mudskippers at night, because when illuminated by bright lights, they cannot move and can be easily caught.
Mudskippers are considered one of the special products of the Go Cong region, because their constant movement results in firm, fragrant, and sweet flesh. However, knowing how to prepare them properly is essential to bring out the true deliciousness of this fish. Mudskippers have no fat but are very slimy and have a slightly fishy taste, so thorough cleaning is necessary to remove the slime. Once cooked and cooled, the fish meat no longer has a fishy smell, which is a significant advantage of this species. Many dishes are made from mudskippers, such as braised with pepper, deep-fried, or in sour soup, but the best is grilled mudskippers with salt and chili. To prepare delicious grilled mudskippers with salt and chili, first wash off the mud from the fish, then marinate with salt and chili, and grill over charcoal. After grilling for a short time, the aroma of the fish spreads, blending with the spicy scent of chili, making diners exclaim in delight at the rich flavor of this dish. In addition, mudskippers can also be dried. Dried mudskipper fish, when fried or grilled and dipped in tamarind fish sauce, is absolutely delicious.
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